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Hayden's Senate Confirmation Begins; FBI Searches Detroit Farm For Teamster Boss Jimmy Hoffa's Remains; Interview with Bush at Border Crossing; "Will and Grace" Signs Off

Aired May 18, 2006 - 15:09   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Let's go straight to Carol Lin, she is working another developing story for us in the newsroom -- Carol.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: Kyra, a short time ago some videotape aired on Al-Jazeera. It is apparently is a United Arab Emirates diplomat who was kidnapped out of his home. Armed gunmen bursting into his house and taking him out.

These are the latest pictures that you see. Can't really tell much by the background or what he is wearing who may be holding him. But in doing some background research, the UAE has been active in humanitarian efforts inside of Iraq. It is working very closely with the Iraqi government on this issue.

As you might recall last year al Qaeda militants killed an Egyptian mission chief there. Other diplomats have been targeted. And that particular group swore to kill any other Arab diplomats of countries which recognize Iraq's government. So this is a story going on right now. And feel for the man, doesn't look scared there but I sure would be if I was in his position.

PHILLIPS: All right. We'll continue to follow-up on that. Carol as you get more information. Just let us know. Thank you so much.

And it may be a game of political football but President Bush's pick for CIA director came ready to play. As you know if you've been watching CNN, General Michael Hayden's Senate confirmation began this morning with Hayden's complaint that intelligence gathering has become what he called the football in American political discourse. But he was quick to play defense when discussing his record at the National Security Agency and the NSA's surveillance programs.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEN. CARL LEVIN, (D) MICHIGAN: ... the only privacy concerns, though, in this program relate to international phone calls.

GENERAL MICHAEL HAYDEN, CIA DIRECTOR NOMINEE: Senator, what I was talking about in January at the press club was what the program that the president had confirmed. It was the program ...

LEVIN: He confirmed publicly.

HAYDEN: Yes, sir. LEVIN: Is that the whole program?

HAYDEN: Senator. I'm not at liberty to talk about that in open session.

LEVIN: I'm not asking you what the program is. I'm just simply saying is what the president described publicly the whole program?

HAYDEN: Senator, all I'm at liberty to say in this session is what I was talking about and I literally, explicitly said this at the press club. I'm talking about the program the president discussed in mid-December.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Let's bring in CNN congressional correspondent Andrea Koppel on Capitol Hill. What have we missed so far, Andrea, within the past hour?

ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: More questioning by more senators but believe it or not, Kyra, they still have not wrapped up the first round of questioning here. And it's unclear as to whether or not they are going to have a second round of open questioning before they move into -- behind closed doors more of the intelligence discussions.

Nevertheless, you could say that this is developing into much more of a partisan line type of questioning. We expected it going into today's briefing. They certainly didn't disappoint. On the one side Republicans trying to support General Hayden, expressing their admiration for his accomplishments and really trying to help him to explain the controversy regarding the NSA eavesdropping programs that General Hayden helped to develop while he was the head of the NSA.

On the other side you've had Democrats like Carl Levin of Michigan and Russ Feingold of Wisconsin who have asked much more pointed questions trying to really put General Hayden on the defensive. Get at what he sees. How he can defend the national security trumping privacy concerns. Here is one exchange with Russ Feingold.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HAYDEN: I made some decisions there is that made some of our operators unhappy. In order to stay within the confines of statute because I had no other legal recourse to do something other than the FISA statute and executive order 12333.

SEN. RUSS FEINGOLD, (D) WI: Article II of the Constitution was in place at that time.

HAYDEN: It was.

FEINGOLD: Why didn't you have legal recourse to that?

HAYDEN: The president had not exercised any of his Article II authorities to authorize the agency to do that kind of activity.

FEINGOLD: Did you urge him to do so?

HAYDEN: No, we did not at the time. No, sir. This happened very quickly.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KOPPEL: Have to a bit of a lawyer to understand that. But in a nutshell they are talking about the post 9/11 decision by President Bush to authorize those wireless wiretaps that the NSA engaged in.

Kyra, fundamentally you have the majority of the members of this committee, nine Republicans, seven Democrats, who are all very respectful of General Hayden but the democrats especially are really frustrated by the fact that over the last several years they feel that they have not been briefed as thoroughly as other members of the Senate Intelligence Committee, other Republicans, other members in Congress, they feel that it was just yesterday suddenly before General Hayden's confirmation hearing that the decision was made to send up the new NSA director to give them a detailed briefing on the surveillance program.

So Democrats are venting right now to General Hayden but there really is no doubt whatsoever that he will ultimately be confirmed by the Senate Intelligence Committee and then the confirmation will move over to the Senate floor, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Andrea Koppel following the hearing for us. Thank you so much. You can also go to CNN.com/pipeline if you want to watch it in your entirety. They are taking it minute by minute.

Well, to this point the nation has had 19 directors of central intelligence but Hayden would only be the second director of the CIA. How can that be? Well, here's the facts.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS (voice-over): In January of 1946 President Truman signed a directive setting up the Central Intelligence Group. Rear Admiral Sydney Souers was his pick. Twenty months and two directors later the National Security Act of 1947 established the CIA. Rear Admiral Roscoe Hillenkoatter was the director during the transition. There would be other noteworthy directors in the decade ahead.

Allen Dulles was in charge when CIA headquarters were built in Langley, Virginia. He also led the agency during the failed CIA supported Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba in 1961. He was replaced a few months later.

William Colby served from '73 through '75 when Congress and a presidential committee too a hard look of allegation of illegal CIA spying on U.S. citizens. Then there was George Herbert Walker Bush. He, of course, would go on to become president. Porter Goss was the nation's last director of central intelligence and the first director of the CIA. The Intelligence Reform Act of 2004 changed the title. The law spelled out that a new appointment would not be necessary.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS (on camera): And later "Will and Grace" bows out tonight. We're going to look at how the hit sitcom broke boundaries with a lot of laughs.

Two of the shows stars join me straight ahead on LIVE FROM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Speculation, searching and shoveling for a second day at a suburban Detroit horse farm. The FBI says it is acting on reliable information that the remains of teamster boss Jimmy Hoffa might be buried there.

CNN's David Mattingly is in Milford, Michigan. He joins us live. We heard from the FBI, so far, nothing too exciting, David.

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Nothing too exciting but you have to step back and really marvel at the confidence that they have in this lead that brought them to this farm. Just by the resources they have brought to bear on this case.

We are listening to Daniel Roberts, the special agent in charge out of Detroit who is overseeing this operation. He was saying about all the experts they brought in, archaeologists, anthropologist, they've even brought in an engineer saying they are possibly going to have to remove one of the structures that's on the farm here so they can search underneath it.

They have some experts who are examining the contour of the landscape, if you can explain that, trying to determine where earth may have been moved or displaced over the past 30 years. So again they are trying to be very thorough following up on this lead again that brought them to this horse farm outside of the metropolitan Detroit area.

And not much beyond that other to say that this is a process that isn't going to take days it's going to take weeks so they are telling everyone here, this large gathering of media, that they are probably going to have to get very familiar with the area and settle in for the long haul as they continue to be very meticulous in just the very first couple of days of what could be a long investigation at this farm, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. We'll be waiting for the surprises. David Mattingly, thanks.

A new weapon in the Iraq War. It's a laser device that the military hopes will save lives. CNN's Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr has the details now. Barbara?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Hello to you, Kyra.

Well you know one of the most tragic things that continues to happen in Iraq is the cases where Iraqis approach U.S. military checkpoints. They don't realize they are checkpoints. The military tries to get them to stop. They keep coming. The military is concerned it is a suicide bomber and they shoot to finally make the vehicle stop.

Now the U.S. military thinks they are working on a solution to this. The Pentagon sources, military sources confirming that the -- they are going to try to start outfitting their M-4 rifles, those long rifles you see the troops carry that they use at checkpoints and that they use on patrols, try to outfit them with something called a green laser, a dazzler, so that if a car approaching a checkpoint doesn't stop before they have to use lethal force and kill someone they will flash this laser off the top of their gun. And it will basically dazzle the driver.

It's a bit controversial, Kyra. They want everyone to know they are not going to blind people. That of course may be a concern in the human rights community. But this is what they are calling a non- lethal weapon. Something they hope will temporarily disable a driver so they can determine who these people are so they don't have any more tragedies, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, we'll follow it. Barbara Starr. Thanks so much.

A grim milestone for Canada. A female soldier was killed in Kandahar province. Captain Nicola Kathleen Sara Goddard (ph) is said to be the first Canadian woman killed in action since World War II. She is also the first Canadian woman killed in front line combat. Goddard died just hours before Canada's parliament OK'd a two year extension of its military mission in Afghanistan.

And now want to salute a number of other fallen heroes, men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice fighting for the U.S. military. And today we remember those who recently died in Afghanistan.

Army Private First Class Brian Moquin Jr. was just 19 when he died in a chopper crash in the Afghan mountains. Her mother learned that her only son had died in a cell phone call during a business trip. She said he always wanted to do something to make everybody proud.

Sergeant John Griffith died in that same Chinook crash earlier this month. He leaves a wife and daughter behind. A former Nevada national guardsmen, Griffith had rejoined the army in 2003.

Staff Sergeant Chris Howick had been in Afghanistan for just three months. A close buddy says he was spirited. Howick also leaves behind a wife and daughter.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, you don't see as many American cars as you used to but there were a few of them in Washington today. The CEOs of the big three auto makers drove to Capitol Hill in ethanol powered vehicles to vent about their problems and what Congress can do to help. The talks are said to center on energy but with so much competition from imports they are also expected to touch on trade issues and health costs.

Oil prices go through the roof. The price of gasoline yo-yos and even if you don't drive, well, you're getting hit. CNN's Allan Chernoff with just a few examples.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Reporter: mangos from Haiti. Produce distributor Steven Katzman pays for them to be flown into the U.S. and then trucked out to retailers. He's paying higher fuel expenses on the way in and the way out.

STEVEN KATZMAN, PRODUCE WHOLESALER: The biggest cost we have is transportation costs.

CHERNOFF: Katzman's customer, Nicholas Kotsianas, who runs the Garden of Eden Gourmet Market now charges shoppers $1.99 each for the mangos.

NICHOLAS KOTSIANAS, MANAGER, GARDEN OF EDEN MARKET: A domino effect. If his prices go up mine go up. If my prices go up the customer is going to see it immediately on the shelf.

CHERNOFF: Many shelf prices are up 20 percent throughout the store, Kotsianas estimates. Like plum tomatoes from Holland, now $7 a pound.

KATZMAN: They are beautiful but to get them here they just don't fly by themselves.

CHERNOFF: It's an expense that a distributor like Katzman has to pass along to the retailer.

KATZMAN: It's not uncommon for the freight or the product that -- to be higher than what I actually end up paying the farmer. We would sell strawberries this time of year for about $15. And you can see they come 12 pints in a container. Right now going back about a month or so we're paying $2.25 freight to get from it California to New York. Now we're paying $2.75 freight.

CHERNOFF: Beyond transportation cost there's Mother Nature's impact on the market place. Last winter's deep freeze in southern Europe, for example.

(on camera): There was a frost in Europe this past winter, now it is showing up in olive oil prices?

KOTSIANAS: Absolutely because of the lack of supply. There's not enough olives now to be pressed to make the oil. So ...

CHERNOFF: How much are prices up?

KOTSIANAS: Twenty percent. CHERNOFF: It's not just produce that's on the rise, all kinds of food. For example, Greek yogurt, this container is now $1.99 up 50 cents in the past month. That's partly because the cost of jet fuel has been soaring but also because the dollar has been declining so yogurt or any other product priced in euros now costs more dollars.

Kotsianas says he's taking a hit as well, reducing profit margins to limit ...

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Allan Chernoff, thank you. We've got to get to the president of the United States. He had a one on one with our Suzanne Malveaux in Yuma, Arizona.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I know we've got to enforce our border. But I'm also realistic there are some -- Amnesty to me means you're an automatic citizen. And I'm not advocating that. Some in the Democratic Party might be advocating that but I'm certainly not.

On the other hand I recognize there have been people here a long period of time. It doesn't make sense to deport millions of people. And so there ought to be a way for people to pay a fine or learn the English language and get in the citizenship line but at the back not in the front.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: A lot of American people see their top priority as Iraq. And the majority of Americans have lost faith in the mission. How do you expect them to stay the course when there are Americans who are killed every day. Forty five this month and there is no clear end in sight?

BUSH: Well, you know, no question Iraq has unsettled the American people. I understand that. You know, people don't like war. And war -- this war is as brutal as other wars, because we face an enemy that will kill, you know, innocent people in order to achieve an objective. And you know, I'm also -- I don't believe Americans want us to cut and run, either. I think they want us to succeed.

And what Americans will see is a new government, a unity government, emerging. What they saw last December and, admittedly, it seems like eternity, were 12 million people saying we want to live in a free society.

MALVEAUX: When we can say U.S. troops...

BUSH: Hold on a second, please. And so what they're seeing is a political track taking place, as well as more Iraqis taking the lead in providing security for themselves. And what was the next question you were asking?

MALVEAUX: When can we see U.S. troops leave? Obviously, just yesterday... BUSH: When the commanders on the ground say that the Iraqis are more prepared to take over more of the security needs. This -- the temptation, of course, is to do things for political purposes in America. I don't want to fight a war based upon politics or polls or focus groups. I want to win this war based upon a strategy that's working, but also based on -- and the military decisions being based upon the advice of General Casey, who's the leader on the ground there.

MALVEAUX: But your own secretary of defense yesterday actually backtracked from what the Pentagon had hoped to say earlier, that many troops, U.S. troops, a significant amount, would be out this year. I mean, how can the American people trust the assessment of this administration?

BUSH: That depends on what the generals say, Suzanne. If the generals say that we're able to fight with fewer troops, we'll fight with fewer troops. The point the American people have got to know is we're going to succeed. And we're not going to succeed by listening to the advice of some in Washington who say let's just pull out now. The Iraqi people want a democracy. They've got a unity government in place. And it's in our national interest that we defeat al Qaeda in Iraq, and at the same time, help this country become a democracy.

MALVEAUX: Let's go back to immigration. There are a lot of people who listen to this debate, and the fact we focus on the southern border, Mexican immigrants, they believe that there are racial if not racist overtones in the debate. There were a couple days ago when you said -- I'm quoting here -- "we are not just going to discriminate against people." What did you mean by that, discriminate? Do you get a sense that there is racism that is creeping into this debate?

BUSH: I think it would be too harsh a judgment to say to somebody who doesn't support a comprehensive immigration plan that they're racist. I don't believe that. I do believe legitimate -- I mean, citizens have got legitimate concerns realizing that parts of this border have been open for anybody who wants to come across. And we've got to stop that. We must enforce our border. And so for those who call for border enforcement, I think it would be certainly not a racist statement.

But what I don't want is I don't want people condemned -- ever condemned based upon their personal beliefs or based upon their religion or based upon their background. And I truly believe the genius of American has been one where we welcome people, we help them to assimilate into society, and we become, you know, one nation under God.

MALVEAUX: I've got just a little bit of time, so let me just wrap this up, if you would. You came into the second term with a lot of confidence and political capital. Clearly, it is your lowest approval ratings at this point, and the congressional Republicans are going in their own direction. What do you do to become -- at least not risk becoming irrelevant? BUSH: Look, yesterday I signed a bill extending capital gains and dividends. We're making -- we've had a very strong legislative record. I will continue to sign good law because I'm working with members of the House and the Senate. I -- you know, we're going to win the war on terror. I'm doing my job what the American people want me to do.

MALVEAUX: Thank you very much, Mr. President.

BUSH: Suzanne, always a pleasure.

MALVEAUX: Thanks. I appreciate it.

BUSH: Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Once again, that was our Suzanne Malveaux, one-on-one with the president there in Yuma, Arizona, as he goes and travels along the border.

Well, coming up on LIVE FROM, second bananas with major appeal. As "Will and Grace" takes a final bow, Jack and Karen serve up some inside dish on the long running sitcom. They join us live.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, it brought TV comedy out of the closet. Now eight years later, the sitcom "Will and Grace" takes a final bow. CNN's Sibila Vargas reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DEBRA MESSING, ACTRESS: A compliment is you're sexy, you turn me on. Not one look at you proves that I'm a queer!

SIBILA VARGAS, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Clever writing and lovable characters made "Will and Grace" a hit with millions.

MEGAN MULLALLY, ACTRESS: Meats and cheeses? You are rocking my clock, Mary!

VARGAS: But for many, "Will and Grace"'s greatest achievement wasn't its comic timing, but its message.

ERIC MCCORMACK, ACTOR: I'm gay.

NEIL GUILIANO, GLAAD PRESIDENT: We know that television has a tremendous impact and influence on people's beliefs and people's opinions of other people. So in that sense, "Will and Grace" has done a tremendous service for the gay and lesbian community of America.

VARGAS: "Queer as Folk," "The L Word," "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" and "Boy Meets Boy" are just a few of the shows developed in the wake of "Will and Grace"'s success. But many of them are now off the air.

GUILIANO: Two percent of the main characters on American television right now are lesbian or gay characters. That has to improve. And we would really hope the networks will see that, from the success of "Will and Grace," they can take the step.

MCCORMACK: Just as blacks and Latinos have fought to have equal representation on television, you know, so does the gay community. And we need gay characters.

SEAN HAYES, ACTOR: Are you ready for Mr. Right? Well, Mr. Right Now, anyway. Goodnight, folks! I'm here all week! Jack 2000!

VARGAS (on camera): For others, the end of "Will and Grace" is part of an inevitable cycle that all TV shows, even ones with strong cultural messages, eventually run their course.

CHRIS LISOTTA, "TV WEEK" MAGAZINE: If you think of all the great shows in television, from "Mary Tyler Moore" to "MASH" to "The Cosby Show," nothing quote, unquote, "replaced" them.

MESSING: I think that we're blessed because we're exactly what we hoped, which would be to go out with people still enjoying us.

VARGAS (voice-over): While many will lament the loss of this historic sitcom...

MULLALLY: I don't think I can go on!

VARGAS: "Will and Grace"'s quest for laughter was a mission accomplished.

MULLALLY: There we go. Nice and cold.

VARGAS: Sibila Vargas, CNN, Hollywood.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, "Will and Grace," may have gotten top billing, but it was Jack and Karen that got the lion's share of the laughs. Oh, boy. The award-winning actors Sean Hayes, Megan Mullally, and also it looks like Eric and Debra are down there, too, on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. I'm going to kind of play it by ear. Can you guys hear me?

CROWD: Yes!

PHILLIPS: Oh, we know that laugh. OK. Sean, do you want to go ahead and give us a report on the numbers, please?

HAYES: Yes, OK. Orange juice is up 20 points, so probably I'll be buying some peaches, I want to -- you know, I zig when they zag. I don't know.

PHILLIPS: Megan -- what about you, Megan? How's the vodka?

MULLALLY: I got a tip on pork bellies. And it has something to do with taking my shirt off later, but we don't want to go into that.

PHILLIPS: Funny that you said that because I believe it was Jennifer Lopez that you -- oh, no, no. She got you to take your shirt off for an autograph in one of the shows, right?

MULLALLY: We thought each other would take a few things off. I don't think we should talk about it here. I'll call you later.

PHILLIPS: OK, good, because I want the inside scoop.

Now, Eric and Debra, are you guys -- you have an IFB too? Can you hear me. OK, no. So we've only got -- all right, so Sean and Megan, we've only got you guys on IFB, right?

(CROSSTALK)

HAYES: That's all that matters. That's all that matters.

PHILLIPS: Yes, you guys are the stars of the show anyway.

(CROSSTALK)

MULLALLY: Yes, that's right.

PHILLIPS: You know what is great? We can totally talk smack about them and they'll have no idea.

HAYES: That's right. We're talking smack about you.

PHILLIPS: What do you think -- oh yes. What do you think of Debra's dress.

MULLALLY: What?

HAYES: Wait, what?

MULLALLY: What? She said what do you think of Debra's breasts?

(CROSSTALK)

HAYES: This isn't awkward at all.

PHILLIPS: No, not her breasts, her dress.

HAYES: Her dress, I think it's beautiful. It's Chanel, right?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, it's Chanel.

HAYES: It's a Chanel dress. She's very proud of it.

PHILLIPS: Although the other parts look great too.

(CROSSTALK)

MULLALLY: We're overstimulated because this is a very grown-up venue for us to be in. PHILLIPS: Well, Megan, usually you have got your martini in your right hand or your left hand. I'm surprised you don't have it with you right now.

HAYES: That's no martini.

MULLALLY: I know.

HAYES: That's no martini.

MULLALLY: Yes. This is my martini today.

PHILLIPS: No, look, you guys, this is the -- I mean this is it. This is the final round. I mean, is it bittersweet?

MULLALLY: This is our last day, yes.

HAYES: Yes, it's been pretty amazing, and to be here with all these -- craziness and these lovely people that are fans. It's -- there's no better place to kind of sign it off.

MULLALLY: Very exciting, yes.

PHILLIPS: Well, you have had an incredible run, and so many cameos on the show, as well. One of our favorites -- and we have got to roll this, because I've got to get your reaction -- the famous Kevin Bacon scene with you, Sean. We're going to roll it and I got to get you to respond.

HAYES: OK.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MCCORMACK: I liked it a lot. You know, I even learned the dance, you know, for our high school talent contest.

KEVIN BACON, ACTOR: Did you win?

MCCORMACK: No, I got a nom, but it meant a lot because it didn't come from my peers. It came from the gay head of the drama department.

BACON: Could you do it for me now?

MCCORMACK: I don't know. It's kind of weird. I don't even know if I remember it. You know, and besides there isn't any ...

(MUSIC)

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Sean, I think Eric does a pretty good "Footloose." What do you think?

HAYES: Yes, I think it's pretty incredible.

MULLALLY: It's really good. Amazing.

PHILLIPS: The only part we didn't see was -- there we go. Now Sean is stepping in and taking over. I'm surprised you didn't join in.

HAYES: Oh, I -- yes, and in classic Jack fashion, I just come in and ruin everything.

PHILLIPS: All right, guys. Well, I'm being told that you've got to get ready to, I guess, ring the bell. Isn't that a song? Maybe you should sing for us. There we go.

MULLALLY: Ring my bell, ring my bell.

HAYES: Ring my bell, ring my bell.

(CROSSTALK)

HAYES: This is really embarrassing.

PHILLIPS: That's the best thing about you guys. I just got to throw something out and boom, you roll on cue. Love the show. We love you guys. I wish we didn't have to wrap this us. We could keep going all day but have some fun and continue to create some chaos on the floor, all right?

HAYES: Thank you. I appreciate it.

MULLALLY: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: All right, guys. The whole crew of "Will & Grace." You've got to catch the grand finale.

Now, let's get straight to Carol Lin. She's working on a developing story for us in the newsroom -- Carol.

LIN: Boy, this story has a slug to it. Cancer vaccine -- that really catches your attention, Kyra. This is what we know right now. An advisory committee of the FDA has endorsed this fully. It's a vaccine that actually blocks two types of viruses that can cause most cases of cervical cancer.

Seventy percent of cervical cancer cases involve these two viruses, and so, in effect, what the FDA is saying is that this vaccine is safe, that if, for example -- kids as young as nine to 15 years old, you want to get the kids before they are sexually active, that this could prevent them from getting genital herpes, or these two HPV viruses, that it could prevent certainly girls from getting cervical cancer and it could prevent boys from getting genital warts.

So a real breakthrough here. Next, it needs to go to the full FDA for approval. That may happen in the next few weeks. The controversy here, Kyra, is if the FDA, for example, were to instruct or in its guidelines include children as young as nine years old, that may be where the controversy comes from but really interesting here and a breakthrough. And it could save many lives.

PHILLIPS: It's good news. Carol Lin, thank you so much.

The news keeps coming. We're going to keep bringing it to you. More LIVE FROM right after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Sleep less, gain more. The snooze button is off in our "Sleepless in America" series as we look at the surprising link between Zs and lbs. More now from Dr. Sanjay Gupta, again, sleeping on the job.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Bill Ten Eyck has always battled the budge, he says since his 40s. He suffered three heart attacks and watched the numbers on the scale go up and down, like a yo-yo. His cardiologist couldn't figure out why his weight was fluctuating so he suggested that Ten Eyck see a sleep specialist.

BILL TEN EYCK, SLEEP APNEA PATIENT: I made the assumption that my fatigue and my inability to do things was because my heart was just failing.

GUPTA: Ten Eyck was diagnosed with sleep apnea. His tests found that some evenings he stopped breathing 33 times in one hour. He wasn't getting rest and that wasn't helping his weight. Not only does a lack of sleep zap your energy, but studies have found that sleep deprived people just seem to eat more.

Doctors say chaotic sleeping patterns tend to develop chaotic eating habits, and that can mess up the metabolism and cause you to burn fewer calories. Researchers have also found that people who got four hours of sleep or less a night saw the rise in the hormone ghrelin that stimulates the appetite and causes people to eat.

DR. THOMAS LORUSSO, NORTHERN VIRGINIA SLEEP DIAGNOSTIC CTR. They got these patients to sleep better using various sleep hygiene techniques, and when they repeated the levels of these hormones they found that the level diminished significantly.

SANJAY: Today, Ten Eyck is working on keeping the pounds off. He uses a CPAP device to help regulate his breathing. It blows air through his nose and keeps his airways open. He says it's been a lifesaver because for once in his life, he's getting a good night's sleep.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: And you can catch Sanjay's one-hour special on sleep airing this Sunday at 10:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN. More LIVE FROM straight ahead. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: A new offensive by the NRA. The National Rifle Association calling on police chiefs not to confiscate weapons in times of crisis. On CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING," one of the group's top guns pointed to New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WAYNE LAPIERRE, EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, NRA: At a time when people were completely on their own, there was no 911 at all, people were trying to make it through a long, dark night with looters and robbers out on the streets and breaking into homes, the police chief issued an unjust order to go barging into peoples homes, often at gun point, confiscate their firearms, not give them any receipts or paperwork at all and leave them totally defenseless. And that's wrong.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: NRA leaders are expected to make a formal appeal to police chiefs and mayors today at their convention in Milwaukee.

Well here's something you don't want to see in your neighborhood. An 11-foot alligator looking for lunch. He's out of circulation in Florida and you'll be in the loop when LIVE FROM continues.

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PHILLIPS: That's it for us here on LIVE FROM, thanks for joining us. We want to go live now to the president of the United States in Yuma, Arizona, as he addresses the crowd right in the middle of the immigration battle. Wolf Blitzer will take it from here.

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